1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a system for forming picture, alphanumeric and micrographic images on the outer surface of a plastic card.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There exist, in the prior art, systems for laminating over photographs placed in a cut-out in the inner core stock of a plastic card, and systems for laminating over an electrophotographic or printed image on the inner core stock of a card. Such prior art lamination systems require a separate image forming procedure in which a photograph is physically placed in the card (or an image is printed on the inner core of the card) and laminated. In addition, such systems do not make use of conventional plastic cards since they require the core stock to be exposed to receive an image, and subsequently laminated, resulting in a requirement to use expensive cards. Such prior art lamination systems slow down the through-put of the plastic cards when carried out in conjunction with embossing and/or encoding of the plastic cards. Finally, since the cost of each individual photograph is relatively high, these lamination systems are not particularly suitable for high volume applications.
One other prior art system for forming images on plastic cards is a system in which a silk screened ink patch is placed on the surface of a plastic card and an image is etched on the silk screened ink patch using an electronically actuated mechanical scribe. As in the case of the prior art lamination systems, such scribing systems do not have the capability of correlating image data and alphanumeric data for placement of corresponding indicia on a single plastic card. In addition, the scribing system is relatively slow, making it unacceptable in an overall system in which encoding or other steps are also to be performed. Further, since it is ncessary to provide a silk screened ink patch on each card, it is not possible to use conventional plastic cards, thereby resulting in an increased cost per card. Finally, the grooves which are present in scribed images are susceptible to the collection of dirt in a wallet environment, thereby resulting in a relatively non-durable card.
There is therefore a need in the industry for a system which is capable of correlating image data and corresponding alphanumeric data, forming an image on a card in accordance with the image data, and encoding the card in accordance with the alphanumeric data. Furthermore, there is a need for such a system in which the image is formed on the outer surface of a conventional plastic credit card in sequence with the encoding of the card. There is a further need for such a system which forms a card having an image which is durable in that it is resistant to wear, abrasion, and the chemicals present in a wallet environment. In addition, there is a need for such a card forming system in which the time for forming the image on the plastic card is approximately the same as or less than the times required for encoding a magnetic stripe or other information directly on the card. There is also a need for a card forming system where the graphic images are applied to the card in less than the time that would be required to utilize state of the art techniques to emboss the card. Finally, there is a need for a system for forming an image on a card wherein the cost per image is sufficiently low, and wherein a high resolution image is obtained.